MOG Editorial Review

An overlooked Krautrock gem, Soon Over Babaluma came at a major turning point in Can’s history. Lead singer Damo Suzuki had just left, but the band still wanted to play on. That was a good call: they channeled the same passion for rhythms and unending energy that had made their prior albums so intense. Can are commonly remembered for long, spacey rock jams and "motorik" grooves, and a special attention to detail, but they also found plenty of occasions to get funky and -- at times -- jazzy in the mid-’70s. So Soon Over Babaluma sounds like a short, sweet take on their entire notion of music at the time. It’s got sonic experimentation and musical details -- like the violin and spacey guitar sounds on “Dizzy Dizzy,” or the piano leads and over-phased vocals on “Come Sta, Le Luna” -- but with a fresh focus on dub-reggae influences. With dub reaching everyone from sci-fi’s William Gibson to The Clash, science-friendly German artists were no exception. Some classic juxtapositions here as well: “Chain Reaction” is a crazy dance number, while following track “Quantum Physics” is a total trip. Soon is the perfect soundtrack to a sci-fi movie that never was.